16 comments:

Stoke in the middle with you is not a Jingle, it is a song by Gerry Rafferty and Joe Egan, as an homage to Bob Dylan; Long live the internet (that is information that was only a few clicks away, or a classic rock song that could have been heard on any radio station over the last 35+ years)

This began as an event in search of a cause. That is why its format has changed do often (originally a 'huge solution', then a technology expo, now a yom tefila). Whatever it takes to fill the stadium.

Do you mean you'd prefer this to be a place only for people who have no critical thinking skills?You can put whatever positive spin you want on it but the fact is that it started out as "a huge problem needs a huge solution". Every yungerman in BMG was talking about how they had spent millions of dollars on some new filter or other solution. They then changed to a technology expo and dropped the single solution. The focus has now become a Yom Tefila to show Hashem we are worried about the internet but have no idea what to do so He should help us (per the interview in Hamodia).The event has clearly changed - that indicates either that the organizer was never too particular about the cause, or that he could not convince enough rabbonim, rosh yeshivas and rebbes that the original approach had value. So we now have a Yom Tefila, a parve enough event that no one can possibly complain about, and one which I fear may not justify the massive expense and hype.Look, I really am a positive kind of guy, but I have to call it like I see it.Last week I asked one of the major Rosh Yeshivas (who sits on the Moetzes) whether to go or not and he said that the only reason to go would be for the Kovod of one of the organizers.

I have no problem with critical thinking skills, and I've left many such comments on my blog. My point is that instead of just throwing up their hands saying nothing can be done about the dangers of the internet, some people are trying. Now it is not an easy task, being that there is no way to please all the people. Do we invite women? Then maybe the Chassidim won't come. Do we have an expo? Well then some companies are just trying to line their pockets. So they decided to make only a Yom Tefilla, as at least it is hard to argue on that. Also, as noted above, they got the entire country talking about it. Not a bad return for an investment of several million dollars.

Although in hindsight, they probably should have better used the money on a SuperBowl ad and saves us all the travel time. :-)

Yes, it was even handed. They even managed to mention the counter-demonstration. But all in all, it was a classy article, worthy of the leading newspaper. Quite unlike some others that viewed this as an opportunity to mock the religious.